Nestled in between the hustle and bustle of Westfield London and Shepherd’s Bush tube station, is an unexpected and beautifully styled Indian restaurant – Copper Chimney, which is home to the most scrumptious samosas.
Created by the master mind, JK Kapur in 1972 in Bombay, the Shepherds Bush restaurant is the first from India’s biggest restaurant group in the UK, and it doesn’t disappoint.
Copper Chimney, claims to be an ode to secret recipes and cooking techniques from across Undivided North India. With every detail taken into consideration, from the Instagrammable collection of copper chimneys hanging from the ceiling (which creating a beautiful focus point in the dining room), to the collection of memorabilia from across India which is carefully placed around the restaurant, which creates an almost Alice in Wonderland Mad Hatter vibe.
This unexpected gem on Ariel Home serves up an incredible mouth-watering menu. In celebration of India spanning from the North-West frontier to Delhi, Copper Chimney’s gorgeous selection of dishes are divided into seven sections; Starter Plates, Tandoor Grills, Curries, Sides, Breads, Biryanis and Desserts with a myriad of delicious items to choose from.
With almost too much to choice (if that’s even possible!), while also being realistic about how much we could actually eat, we chose the Amritsari Shrimp starter – a popular plate from the alleys of Amritsar, Punjab, which comes with carom-flavoured, batter-fried shrimp and a dip which is to-die-for; alongside some of the best vegetable samosas I’ve eaten in a long time.
For mains we went for some of their self-proclaimed best dishes – marked with a cute CC logo for easy identification! First up was the Paneer Masala with fresh and soft cottage cheese simmered in a buttery, tomato gravy – rich and satisfying, the presentation made it easy to snap for a few stories. But the star of the show had to be the Buttermilk Chicken curry – a boneless Tandoor chicken, simmered in their signature tomato butter flavoured gravy and accentuated with dry fenugreek. A few days on and I’m already planning my next visit to get my hands on that melt-in-your-mouth chicken again! Thankfully you can order from Deliveroo, so there’s a quick fix if or when the craving does get the better of me.
To finish, and filled with arguably too much food at this point, we were recommended the Gajar Pistachio Crumble. Not normally one to order dessert, it was a nice change to have a pud filled with spices to take the edge of the sweetness of the carrot crumble along with a refreshing pistachio ice cream.
Copper Chimney also runs a happy hour, Monday to Friday, 3pm-6pm, offering 2-4-1 on cocktails, wines and beers which is excellent for late afternoon drinks or early evening aperitifs pre-dinner. And for those wanting a quick and tasty lunch their set lunch is priced at £10 for a veggie option or £12 for non-vegetarian and includes one main dish from either the Tandoor Grill or the Curries with sides, salad and naan or rice.
With every detail really well thought out, Copper Chimney served up a delicious meal. We had a great time, and we’ll definitely be visiting again to refuel after a day spent shopping.
